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On location with Carrie and Cooper: Nesting.

October 25, 2013

Carrie and Cooper, our friends at high elevation, are heading in to the home-stretch. Baby #2 is coming very soon. And with cooling temperatures and the onset of snow, this Leadville family has headed indoors to prepare for baby’s arrival. Nesting is underway.

“The Leadville summer ended with a couple of good snow storms and chilly temperatures, meaning much of the garden crop was pulled by Hattie (with some help) and processed into baby food that is now frozen and awaiting the day the little man wants to try some solids. Beets, carrots, and spinach mostly … plus we arranged to get two boxes of 2nds apples that were turned into about 15 quarts of applesauce in one epic day of canning activities. Hattie is actually still working on last year’s batch, but figuring we’ll need all the extra we can get with an extra mouth in the house starting in six months or so. Many of Hattie’s gDiaper disposable inserts (wet ones only) helped to create the nutrients absorbed by the veggies that now constitute what will be some of little brother’s first bites of solid food.”

Hattie harvests the last of the carrots.The makings for awesome sauce.

Bringing it all inside.

The key to good, usable compost is getting the right balance of green and brown materials and heat, water and air, which means that for many home-composters, the pile goes dormant during the colder months.

“As composting is on hold for us during much of the winter months, we’ll have to go full-scale on flushing a majority of the inserts until spring. The keys to this process, as we learned with Hattie, is to do one at a time, be sure to rip open the insert, and give it a quick stir. Too much detail perhaps, but one thing we’ve learned over 2+ years is that you have to get your hands dirty once in a while with little people in the house. Anyway … rip, stir and flush.”

So now we wait.

Waiting is never easy. But waiting for the arrival of a new baby is like watching the last 5 minutes on the clock on the last day of high school. Whether it’s baby #1, baby #2, a scheduled delivery or an adoption, those minutes, hours and days tick by with molasses-like slowness. But he’s coming soon. And we’re on the edge of our seats.

“Hattie appears to be coming around to the idea of an additional family member. For much of the summer, when asked if she wanted a baby brother or sister she would respond with a simple “no”. A handful of books about siblings and boy clothes for one of her dolls seem to have helped turn the tide on her attitude. She has taken to calling her brother “Lunchbox”, which is quite handy as a quick way to keep people from asking us about his name (which we are keeping a secret until the next post as a family of four).”

Ready when you are, Lunchbox. There’s a whole new world out here for you to explore.